초등학교 3학년 영어 교사용 지도서 분석연구

Abstract

This study aims to examine whether ‘teacher talk’ used for game activities in teacher guidebook’s for Elementary School English 3 is appropriate for those students who start learning English vocabularies and to provide guidelines how to improve ‘teacher talk’ in teacher’s guidebook for better understanding of students. There are three research questions proposed for the purpose of the study as follows: First, was ‘teacher talk’ in teacher's English guidebook for 3rd graders in elementary school appropriate for the level of 3rd grade students who learn English for the first time in public schools? Second, was ‘teacher talk’ used for game activities at the difficult level in each unit and each class hour improved appropriately by unit? Third, were those difficult words used for ‘teacher talk’ in game activities repeated appropriately by unit and class hour to reinforce students' learning? To solve each research question, our research methods are used as follows: To see if teacher talk presented in game activities of teacher's English guidebook for 3rd graders in elementary school is appropriate for the level of students, teacher talk is all extracted from game activities appeared in three kinds of teacher's English guidebook for 3 graders for vocabulary analysis. Our research findings are as follows: First, the number of vocabularies used in three kinds of teacher's guidebook was between 429 and 504 vocabularies and the amount of vocabularies is considered to be too much for 3rd graders as it usually takes up to the sixth grade to learn them all. The level of vocabulary appears to be inappropriate to teach elementary school students as some vocabularies are for those middle school students and some vocabularies do not fall into the recommended educational curriculum. Second, the amount of difficult vocabularies presented in three kinds of textbook was largely inconsistent, but the overall pattern was improved gradually. This may lead students to face some difficulties to understand the rules of game. In each guidebook, the number of vocabulary repeated zero time was 57% and this implies that it is more likely that vocabularies at the secondary level would not appear in the second half. Those vocabularies at the secondary level repeated more six times were only 6% on average and this is considered to be difficult for 3rd graders to acquire the secondary-level vocabularies. For effective vocabulary learning, vocabularies should be well distributed and repeated for students. Those vocabularies repeated at more than four different places were only 4-12%. However, students' English level should be re-evaluated from students' perspective as they are learning English as a foreign language. Presentation and use of ‘teacher talk’ appropriate for the level of students is highly required. Suggestions on ‘teacher talk’ are drawn from the findings of the study. First, vocabularies used for ‘teacher talk’ in teacher's guidebook need to be modified to lighten the learning burden of students by considering those vocabularies at the level of elementary school in educational curriculum. Although exact number of vocabularies cannot be defined, it should not exceed the recommended level of elementary school. Second, it is necessary to understand the level of elementary school from student's perspective rather than teacher’s or professor's perspectives. The psychological burden of students should be taken into consideration by adjusting inputs that are more understandable at the level of 3rd graders. Third, in 3rd grade game activities, ‘teacher talk’ mostly explains about rules or is used in the process of doing games. Body gestures should be used for easy vocabulary acquisition through game activities or repetition is necessary to improve students' understanding. Finally, teachers should apply the reference table not only in text book but also in teacher’s guidebook to recognize the level of learners so that students can use English as comfortable as Korean. Based on this study, further studies need to investigate how ‘teacher talk’ helpful for teachers is presented in teacher's guidebook and also recognize appropriate use of ‘teacher talk’ at the student level.